Peruvian Adventures #13

Friday, October 22, 2010

Well, today is the day! Today we got up early at 3:30 so our group could get ready, eat breakfast and catch the bus up to Machu Picchu to watch the sunrise. We had gone to bed early the night before which is why Kimberly and I opted to have a late lunch early - early dinner rather than eat with the group after the meeting at 6:30. We ended up getting to bed at 8:30 so it worked out great.

We caught the bus as soon as we could and made the 30 minute windy trek up to Machu Picchu. There was a long queue so we go in and started hiking up to get the sunrise after about 20 minutes after it already rose. Still, it was absolutely amazing. Looks like how it does in the postcards. We had time to just sit and stare at the view before meeting with our guide who would take us on a 2 hour tour.

Our tour leader was great. He was very informative about telling us about the reasons for Machu Picchu and all the important areas. It was quite a hike for all of us, still due to the altitude. We found out that there is still a fourth location that hasn't been discovered yet, with the other 3 major Incan sites in this area. There is also so much of the Incan trail that hasn't been discovered yet. It's covered over and this area is such a huge archeological area that they are still uncovering things. It's been so interesting to learn all of this. I'm looking forward when I get home and can head over to the library and check out some books on the subject.

After the tour we were able to go and hike around on our own. We did that for awhile and took lots of pictures but around noon it was pretty hot, we were hungry, tired and it was getting pretty crowded with tour groups so we left and caught the bus back down the mountain. We asked Ellen from Canada if she wanted to join us for lunch and we headed over to Indo Feliz again as the food was so amazing. I had the French onion soup again and the mango trout and finished with the best apple tart I have ever had. I wish this restaurant was closer. We met the owner and told him how much we enjoyed the food. Then we headed to meet the group so we could catch our train back to Ollantaytambo and from there catch our van to take a two hour trip back to Cusco. It was a long journey and I was feeling a little sick but we got back to our hotel. We got settled and then we were out for the night.

Peruvian Adventures #12

Thursday, October 21, 2010

After the most amazing sleep and hotel we have had yet, we got up early and took a train to Aguas Calientes which is at the foot of the mountain leading up to Machu Picchu. The train was gorgeous and had windows on the ceiling so we could see beautiful snow capped mountains. Everything was so lush and green, vegetation everywhere. Blue skies and green hills.

After we arrived after about an hour and 45 minutes train ride we took a short hike up to our hotel. People were just checking out so they were getting the rooms cleaned. We waited about 20 minutes and then got the key to our room.

After we got settled we went to check the area. We looked around a bit then stopped at a little place that had Pisco sours and nachos. We ordered nachos and after eating a bit Kimberly noticed a worm crawling across our plate. We let the waiter know and he took it off the bill. Pisco sour was ok. We also went looking for some glue or tape as my hiking boots were starting to talk as the heel was coming apart. Found super glue at the second store we went to to use for rubber for 5 soles (about $1.25). It worked great. We checked out the shopping area and came across some of our group in a restaurant called Indo Feliz.

After that, we still checked out some bridges, shopping and after the rain subsided we went to Indo Feliz. I'm so glad we did. It was so great!!! It was the best food that we had on the trip thus far It was great!!!

After, we went back to our hotel to relax before our meeting and after our meeting we went to bed early for the next day.

Peruvian Adventures #11

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Where do I even start? What an amazing day! Both Kimberly and I slept like crap at the hotel in Cusco. Room was freezing so we had the heater on which was loud and made the air very dry so we couldn't breathe. When the alarm went off at 5 I had been awake since 2. Ug.

I got up and got ready and went downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast was ok but I had to be careful what I ate so I just had bread and tea. We left a little while later on a small private van/bus up into the Sacred Valley. The views above Cusco were amazing!

Throughout the day we stopped at some incredible places. I think one of the best being the GAP Adventures place where they are helping the local people rebuild and 100% of any of their craft items you buy go directly to them. All handmade, all alpaca and or wool and all naturally made colors done by them. Our bus was greeted by a bunch of little Peruvian boys running along side the bus and then greeting us with smiles and "Hola!". So great!! I've been taking a ton of pictures.

After that we stopped at the Sacred Valley. Just absolutely stunning. I don't know if I can even put it into words to do it justice.

We stopped at a jewelry place and got to see how the silver is made. I got to hold a big piece of turquoise which was rather neat.

We then stopped for lunch at this place called Alhambra. It was like Fantasy Island. Multicolored macaws up in the trees, llamas, and just a wonderful tropical setting. Lunch was buffet style with many things to try and just so flavorful. The bathrooms were HUGE and the best we had come across.

After lunch our next stop was at Ollantaytambo archeological site. We hiked to the top and it really was amazing. It wasn't an easy hike because of the altitude but we all did it.

After we stopped at a local woman's bar called Descanso where she makes chicha morado. I hope I spelled that right. It's a purple or other corn fermented beer. I liked the strawberry flavored one. After we played this drinking game called Tapo, I believe. You toss these big fake gold coins at this wooden box which has a frog with an open mouth. There are different holes in the box around the frog and you get points. I was pretty excited that I got top score out of all of our group. You could buy the pieces and make the wooden box yourself but the gold pieces were so heavy and I would have been over my weight limit. After that we got to our hotel, which is absolutely gorgeous. On to Agua Calientes and then Machu Picchu after!

Peruvian Adventures #10

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

I woke up this morning feeling so much better! I believe the shot really helped. We got up at 5:00 am, got packed and went downstairs for breakfast. Since I still have to be careful I just basically had bread, olives and tea. We got on the bus around 8 and started making our way over to Cusco. We knew we would have to make a few stops since now, Michelle was sick, amongst others. The countryside was beautiful. We saw streams, waterfalls, rain, gorgeous clouds, flamingoes, ostriches, llamas and other great things.

We stopped for lunch and I had a great vegetable soup. The restaurant we stopped at was cute and modern. Right next door there was another restaurant with 2 llamas in front and I got llama kisses and the one chewed some hair from my head. Ouch!!!

We got into town around 4:15 and into our rooms. Our hotel room was super cold so we had to turn on the tiny portable heater. We were all supposed to meet for a meeting at 6:30 but Kimberly and I knew if we didn't go eat until after that we wouldn't be eating until about 8:30 so we went out on our own and ended up finding a great little vegetarian restaurant around the corner from our hotel. We both ordered veggie burgers and guacamole and chips. It was so good. Then we met for the meeting and are now back in the room and going to bed since we have an early day as we head up to the Sacred Valley and then Machu Picchu the next day.

Here we go!!!

Peruvian Adventures #9

Monday, October 18, 2010

Sadly, we had to skip out on Lake Titicaca and the floating islands today. I was up throughout the night and not feeling well and knew that it was going to be an all day affair. Kimberly was still feeling out of it from the altitude and sheer exhaustion. Coca tea hasn't been helping. We stayed in, skipped breakfast and slept and got out into the town of Puno around noon.

We went and got lunch at the place the group had dinner the night before. I had the quinoa soup which was amazing and Kimberly had the mini pizza with spinach and cheese which looked really good. After we walked a bit and I still wasn't feeling all that great so we went back to the room. We stayed a bit and then decided to go check out the Coca Museum. It was 5 Soles to get in and worth it. Approximately $2. It told about the history of the coca leaf and it's many medicinal uses and the culture. We then got to try on various costumes which was great. After we went to a bakery and bought some bread and went back to the room. Julio called later to check on us. He said the doctor would be coming to the hotel because quite a few of the people on our tour were sick. He asked if I wanted him to check on me and I said possibly. I wasn't sure if I wanted to shell out the 120.00 Soles. After a bit I decided to do it since I knew we were going to be on a small bus the whole next day. Anyway, this cute little older gentleman Peruvian doctor comes with Julio to pay me a visit. Julio translates and I get a shot in the bum (ouch!) and a prescription of three various medications. Julio goes and gets them filled and we have our meeting and then order dinner to be brought up to the room. I ordered chicken soup and Kimberly the cheese omelet. We ate, I talked to David and then we were out for the night.

Highlight of the day was trying costumes on at the coca museum.

Peruvian Mis-Adventures #8

Sunday, October 18, 2010

What a day! I had to get up at 3:00 am this morning so we could get ready, have breakfast and take our coach to the airport for a 6:10 am flight. Problem is I did not sleep well the night before. Kimberly wasn't feeling well or sleeping well so she didn't even get to bed until about 10:30 pm or so.
Of course I woke up before the alarm. I wasn't too tired and got ready in 20 minutes.

All of us got to the airport but one of the group, Penny, was sick all night. The airplane left about 20 minutes late and I slept throughout the entire flight until we touched down. After that, Alex wasn't feeling well at all. We were at a higher altitude. We drove to Puno and got to the hotel just after making a viewpoint stop.

The hotel that we are staying at in Puno is called Casona Plaza Hotel and is really nice. We checked in around 10 am and Kimberly was exhausted so she went to the room to rest and I went with the rest of the group to do a small tour of the city. I ended up coming back after not too long to rest. I set my alarm, or I thought I did, for 12:45 to go and eat with the group. I ended sleeping until 1:30 as I had set the alarm for 1:45. I got up for a bit after that and went to get some water. After that I came back and we had a meeting about tomorrow's plans. I was able to order some toast to be brought up to Kimberly. After that some of the group went to dinner. I wasn't feeling all that great so I just ordered some chicken noodle soup and some rice. After eating I really wasn't feeling well and asked to pay my bill early and go. On the walk back Helen caught up with me so I wouldn't have to walk alone. She was asking if I was going to feel well enough to take the 3 hour boat trip tomorrow. I said I didn't know but I hoped so. All of a sudden I felt really out of it and dizzy. She asked if I wanted to sit down and I went to sit down and got sick 4 times in a row. Ug, awful.

Now I'm back in the room and I feel ok but not sure how I will feel tomorrow.

There was a highlight or two today, believe it or not. One is seeing another wedding in the town center complete with a military band. The other was having the cutest little boy talk to me at the airport. He was about 7 years old and it was going to be his first time on a plane. He told me about his little sister and that his name was Pito. He asked if I spoke Spanish and asked my name. Then he told me my name was beautiful! So cute!

Well I'm still not feeling great and I'm going to bed.

Peruvian adventures #7

Saturday, October 16, 2010

I kind of like not knowing what the date is. I have to save this and look at the calendar on my phone. I meant to sleep in till 6:30 bur the roosters and sunlight won't let me. I slept SO well last night. The bed was comfy and the room dark. It was great. I watched a little bit of Happy Feet last night. I think it's a cute movie but so sad when he gets caught so I turned it off at that point.

Ok, it's the end of the day at Arequipa and we leave at 4:45 tomorrow morning. I just want to say I LOVE Arequipa!!! It's so beautiful here and I would feel totally safe coming back here on my own and staying at one of the local hostels in the city center. Clean air, amazing restaurant choices, blue sky, snow capped mountains, wonderful history to experience. I love it here! Don't think I would go back to Lima, Nasca or Puerto Inca but I want to come back to Arequipa. The locals are friendly and proud of their wonderful city.

We got a brief city tour this morning and got to try Mata, see guinea pigs and see local fruits growing. We were on a big tour bus and going down a tiny street and there were some taxis coming the other way and we were stuck. Well they started honking and this young Peruvian woman who had been doing some kind of work on her roof came over to the edge and started yelling at the taxi guys that they needed to back up. Or at least that's what it looked like. She was so great and feisty, I had to take a photo. After they realized that they had to back up she just kind of glanced over at the bus and I smiled, waves and we all gave her the thumbs up and she smiled back. It was just the best smile. That was a highlight.

The snowcapped mountains and the local nuns another highlight. We also went to an Alpaca making company. I got to pet the Alpacas and see how it's made.

We also stopped in the center and visited some churches and tried queso helado which is cheese ice cream but technically milk, sugar, cocoanut made into ice cream. It was really good and we saw a wedding party that just got married. We also went for a great lunch and I got to try alpaca steak. It was really good. Kimberly got quinoa with cheese which was amazing.

We toured a beautiful convent and after we went to see Juanita the Incan mummy. She is so well preserved. It was amazing to see in person. Did some shopping and now back in the room as we have to be up before 4 am to catch a flight to Puno. Too tired and still too full from lunch. I will miss Arequipa. I wish we had more time here.

Watching Iron Man and going to bed.

Peruvian adventures #6

Friday, October 14, 2010

I woke up about 10 minutes before my alarm went off, at 5:30. The sun was just coming up and I hadn't slept well as I could feel the wooden slats through the mattress. My stuff was all gathered and ready to take a shower so I went into the bathroom and turned on the hot water in the shower and waited. Checked again. Still cold. Well that could be because we are at the very top room at the top of the hill, maybe it takes awhile. Waited a few minutes more. Checked again. Not hot. Ok, maybe I turned the wrong one. Tried the other knob and waited. Nope, now freezing water. Ok, maybe I have to turn the red plastic knob under the sink. It's red, it could mean hot. I do that and test again and still not even close to warm. Turn the red knob the other way. Nope, that doesn't work either. Meanwhile, I am cold and naked and have tracked water across the slippery black tile floor because there is no other towel to use on the floor. Great. That's not the word I'm thinking but I can't get redressed and go hunt down someone down at the bottom of the hill. Sooooo.....I get in and stand to one side and give myself a very cold one-handed shower. Not fun. After I was done I was pretty sure I could have pierced any part of my body because I was numb. Ug. I told Kimberly about the water problem and she opted out of taking a shower. Anyway, we both got ready and went downstairs to meet Julio and some of the group for a morning hike to see some Incan ruins. Found out that some had hot water, some only cold and some no water. Not a happy morning group and Julio complained and all they could say was sorry.

The area was beautiful. I got on the swings and swung while looking at the ocean waves. That was a highlight.

The hike to the ruins was great. Again, a lot of skeletal remains and Incan ruins. Amazing that it was by the beach. After the ruins we had to get back for breakfast at 8:00 am as the bus was due to leave at 8:30. A little complaining here: Breakfast was a hard roll, butter (which didn't taste as good as any of the other butter we had come across) and orange marmalade. All the other places had great breakfast choices but this place just plain sucked. Even the water in the bathrooms had a funky smell. I definitely used my water purification tablets at this place. Luckily I had a few snack items from the day before so that helped with the lack of breakfast. I think we were glad to leave this hotel but not looking forward to the 8+ hour bus ride to Arequipa.

Bus ride wasn't that bad. Kimberly and I had the back row so we were able to stretch out. We has a lot of hill driving through sand dunes as most of the area that we were in was desert. We saw a big rig truck on it's side. It was a beer truck and beer was everywhere. It looked like everyone involved was ok as they were sitting there drinking beer, making the best of the situation.

Lunch was splendid. In a town called Mahana I believe. I had the shrimp and rice. It had a wonderful spicy sauce and one of the best dishes I have had here.

Back on the road after lunch and another 4 hours to go. We finally make it to Arequipa after our driver having problems finding the hotel. It is a really big city. Anyway, we get settled, have a nice, long, hot shower and relax. We have Wifi and cable tv and the hotel is cute. Can't wait to check everything out tomorrow.

It is 11:02 pm and Kimberly is out like a light and I am clean, content and tired. Bed NOW!

Goodnight!

Peruvian adventures #5

Thursday, October 14, 2010

It's 5:10 am and I can't sleep. Kimberly had to get up to use the restroom and I haven't been able to get back to sleep. She has because I can hear her snoring in the next room! Wow! I can hear a rooster off in the distance and I believe there must be peacocks nearby as I can hear them as well. I know David and I would be laughing about the bird sounds as there was many birds a few of the days outside my place and we would hear them in the middle of the night and they were SO loud but I love the fresh air.

Today we have breakfast, a cemetery and then a four hour bus drive to our next destination.

When do I get to try Cuy??!!

More later.

Much later. The next day in fact. When I got up yesterday morning and got ready I took a stroll around the grounds and checked everything out. It's a great hotel, even if out in the middle of nowhere and locked in. I heard many peacocks this morning. There were many fruit trees growing on the grounds. Papaya and lemon to name a couple. There was a llama and a white horse in the back of the grounds. A hammock and a swing set. I swung for a bit and visited the llama who was friendly enough. The pool was HUGE and blue and white. Stuck my foot in and it wasn't bad. Wish I had time to go in. Went over to the breakfast area and sat down to start in.

Breakfast choices were scrambled eggs, toast, fresh fruit, feta cheese, olives, jamon, corn flakes, fruit juices and choices of coffee and tea, including coca tea, which is supposed to help with altitude sickness. Again, it was a really good breakfast before we had to leave.

We first got to go to the cemetery tour. Yes, it was a long drive to the middle of nowhere and a very bumpy ride through dirt but it was worth it. It was called Zona Arqueologica Necropolis De Chauchilla. We had an additional tour guide for this portion and Kimberly says her name was Maria but I thought it was Tina. She said "Yeah" A LOT. Pretty much every sentence and it ended in a question. We had a little trouble understanding her as her accent was so thick but she was very knowledgeable. We saw a lot of mummies and there were a lot of skeletal remains everywhere. I was pretty excited that I got to touch a human skull. As some of you may know I have a big interest in cooking, brain surgery and FBI and forensic science. The fact that I was able to touch a human skull from the pre-Inca people (Nasca people) was a definite highlight of this trip. Every day on this trip I have highlights of things that happen or we come across that are just my favorites. It's great!

After the cemetery we were on the road some of the group decided do the flight over the Nasca lines. About 5 in total decided to go, including Kimberly and the rest of us were dropped off at a pottery making place near the Airport. There was a small dog outside the pottery place in which our other tour guided, referred to as Chocolatte. The dog was a light reddish brown in color so I thought it was more chocolate con leche. The dog was in bad shape. Looked like it had cataracts and had caca stuck to it's butt. Poor perro. Once inside we got to watch how they make the pottery. It was interesting but I'm not the biggest fan of pottery. We were done after about 30 minutes. We had to wait for the girls that did the airplane tour so after waiting for about 30 to 40 minutes more we were informed that we were going to get on the bus and drive into Nasca and go to the store to get some fruit. I first got some crackers, cheese, red wine and coca tea. I also bought some water. Then we went and bought fruit from the fruit store. I got some small bananas and a cherimoya fruit. Then we went to the bakery and I bought a cheese empinada. The funny thing is that I was able to help some of the British ladies on the trip with translating and purchasing. Me! That was a highlight. We then got on the bus and had to wait some more. We parked by a hospital and snacked a little. Then they decided we would wait by the airport. We got there and I looked around and saw a couple of people from our group sitting in a small plane on the Tarmac. I went inside the tiny airport and got a cerveza malta and looked around a bit. I bought some azul pajama pantelones for cheap! Finally, about 45 minutes later they were done.

I found out that Kimberly and Penny both got sick and there was no air on the plane. They both had thought of canceling out because it had taken so long. They all waited for hours, probably 3 in total and you only can see a few. At least they got to see more than the few minutes that we were up on the tower the day before.

We got back on the bus and drove for hours to our next destination, Puerta Inca but that's another story.

It was a long bus drive and we drive to a hotel that's called Puerto Inca. It's not a town. We had to take the bus down this dusty road for quite a ways till we got there. When we got there it was dark and a bit chilly. Our room was up many, many steps at the top of the hill. Luckily they took our bags up for us. We got settled in and were told that we could get dinner at the main area in an hour and a half. It was a long wait so Kimberly wrote some stuff on her computer but we had no Internet, wifi or TV. I started watching Up on my iPhone. When we went down for dinner I tried Kimberly's asparagus soup which was good. Sadly my fish was a tad cold but so hungry I ate it anyway.

I don't like to complain when I'm on vacation but I have to say this wasn't the place to stay on this trip. The room smelled a bit damp and moldy. There was no shampoo in the room and no floor towel. AND, that wasn't the worst of it.

Peruvian Aventures #4?

We haven't had wifi access for a few days so I'll have to send these all out at the same time when we do.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

This morning we started out with a great breakfast at the hotel. There were many choices. You could choose from scrambled eggs, ham, feta cheese, slices of some type of white cheese, olives, tomatoes, mango, watermelon, papaya, French toast, little bits of fried chicken, honey, corn flakes, raspberry yogurt, cocoa puffs, just a ton of items to choose from!

After breakfast we got on the bus and drove about a block to the port. We then all got on a boat and went out to the Ballestas Islands. We saw millions of birds there. Pellicans, sea gulls and penguins. We also saw many sea lions. I would have to say the highlight of that excursion is having at least 6 dolphins come up to the side of the boat, jumping in and out of the water and a mama dolphin with her calf. After we got back to port we got back in the bus and went down the street to the hotel and picked up our bags and left on our way to the pisco making distillery.

The area that the pisco distillery was hot. We took a short tour and got to sample all kinds of pisco after. Then we were able to purchase some. Which I did.

From there we went to an area which was really an oasis in the desert. There were sand dunes all around and a small lake in the middle. We had lunch where I had rice and beans and also this potato appetizer with a slightly spicy sauce on it. We had the option to pay for a dune buggy ride of the sand dunes but we both opted out after the bumpy boat ride in the morning and being jostled about in the bus in the afternoon. We walked around the area and I saw a YHA hostel. We ended up settling down at the park and took a nap on the grass. That was so relaxing! The wind had a slight breeze in the palm trees above us. I could have slept for hours there.

We next took about three hours bus ride to the Nazca lines. It was a long trip and when we finally got there the sun was just setting. We had to hurry up the platform to be able to see them and even then we could only just make out two of them. I took a couple of pictures which came out ok. I think that Kimberly's camera was too nice and they didn't come out well because of the distance. It was a bit disappointing since we were only there for about 10 minutes and that was supposed to be a highlight of the trip. There is one woman on our bus who really wants to take the plane trip to see the lines but it is not advisable since there has been 13 deaths this year alone with the last one happening last week. Kimberly had wanted to do the plane trip but does want to go to the cemetery trip that is in the morning.

We got to the hotel around 6:45 and that is in Nazca which is really in the middle of nowhere. It's on the outskirts of town and down a very long and bumpy dirt road. It's a really nice hotel and I'm looking forward to seeing it in the am. We settled into our room and took a look around. The room had a fridge, 2 twin beds, a dresser and a closet. When I opened the door to see the bathroom I was surprised to see another room with 2 more twin beds. It's rather nice. I'm in the back room and Kimberly is in the front room which is great because I have the window open and fresh air coming in. The bathroom is HUGE! There is no tv though.

After settling in we ate dinner at the hotel. I got these cheese won ton stick things with guacamole. I know it doesn't sound good but they were so yummy. I also had a glass of red wine. Kimberly was able to get spaghetti with marinara sauce which was really good. We asked our tour guide, Julio, to eat with us since he was going to sit alone. The hotel also gave us complimentary pisco sours, which was great.

Peruvian adventures #3

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

So we are heading south of Lima and it's been about half of a very long 4 hour bus ride to our next destination. We've been going along the coast and I've seen so many shanty towns. There are many one room houses that have been shoddily built that I can't imagine how they withstand the elements. The people that live in them have moved from other areas in Peru to try and make a better life for themselves. With little or no education this is rarely possible. Many of these places are built with bricks but others use old scraps of metal, straw mats, old windows and whatever else they can find. Many are in such bad shape that they look inhabitable but others seem to house some people as I can tell by the clothes drying outside. There is also SO many food stands and beverage stands. Also restaurants that are in the middle of nowhere. Selling ceviche. Yum! Lots of corn growing in the area as well as grapes. We also saw fields of artichokes growing.

I'm looking at miles upon miles of beautiful pacific ocean coastline. The waves where I am at are pretty big and every so often I see some surfers giving it a shot.

Right now we are passing by a huge chicken farm. Right by the ocean. I can see hundreds of chickens from our little bus passing by.

I like that as we drive down this road to our next destination many people will wave at the bus and smile. The Peruvians for the most part are friendly as I've had to ask for things in my very limited Spanish but hopefully it's getting better.

The one sad thing is all of the dogs. There are so many homeless dogs here. In the Lima city center I remember one dog that wouldn't even look up. He looked so sad, half sitting, half laying by a building, just looking down at his paws like he wanted to die. So sad.

We got to the hotel around 6:45 and it was dark. Some of the group wanted to grab dinner but that meant getting back on the bus so we opted out. We got up to our room and it is so cute. White tile floors, wood trim and blue accents. I can hear that we are right near the beach and can't wait to see what it looks like on the outside in daylight. It's 4:30 am and I can't sleep. First because there was a rooster off in the distance saying his morning hello and then my roommate was snoring a bit. We have an early morning so we have to get up in an hour. Can't wait! We do a boat tour of the Ballestas Islands. We will get a chance to see some marine life before heading over to Nazca this afternoon.

Last night we ate at the restaurant next to the hotel. I had fresh veggies and a dish called Cauza again which was layered fish and potato cake. Another yum! Kimberly had a fried fish dish with vegetables.

We came back to the room and settled in and watched tv. The news channel was showing that they were having a rescuer go in the start getting the Chilean miners out. Kimberly tried to stay up to watch but fell asleep. It was taking a really long time. Finally, at 10:12 at night I saw the first miner rescued. His son and wife were there and you could just see his son sobbing but happy to. You have to admire the spirit of those miners. It's been since August 5th since they were down there and they really seemed to keep there spirits up considering what they had to contend with. After that I went to sleep as I was exhausted.

Peruvian adventures #2

Today we started out with the same wonderful breakfast provided by the hotel. I really love the plain yogurt with papaya. So tasty.

We started walking around around Mira Flores and came across a bus touring company called Mirabus. We inquired how much and it was 10 soles per person which is around $3.50 or $4 pee person. We paid and sat on the top deck of the double decker bus. The bus took us all around the town of Mira Flores and the tour guide informed everyone of the various sites. A little problem was that it was completely in Spanish. I can pick out a few words here and there but here the Spanish is spoken pretty fast so it was hard to understand. It didn't matter because it was a great way to see the town and decide where we wanted to go next. It took us down by the ocean and the views were amazing.

After the tour ended we started walking around again and ended up by a church where we saw a few cats lounging in the sun outside. Then we saw a few more. Then a few more. We maybe saw 40 cats around this church. We found out that there was a rat problem in the area. They brought in the cats to solve the rat problem then people who didn't want their cats anymore started dropping their cats off there. Sad.

After that we took a taxi to the old Peruvian pre-Inca ruins. It was called Museo de Sitio Huaca Pucllana and it was amazing to walk along the ruins right in the center of town. It was a great tour and very informative. They are working on having the museum portion as it is very tiny and they would like to display all they have excavated but it will take many years to build.

After the tour we walked around more and went to Wong supermarket. One thing I always love to do when I am on vacation is go see what they have at the supermarket. I bought various fruit, a chocolate type cream of wheat, a bottle of red wine and pineapple marmalade. We had to be back at the hotel for a tour meeting so we headed back and got a bite to eat nearby. I had steak, beef heart, tripe, black pudding (not as good as the UK version) and chorizo. Yum! Another pisco sour of course and then met our group and tour guide. Found out that due to the recent plane crashes/deaths at the Nazca lines we would not be doing that. I'm ok with that! They also passed out pisco sours to try. Yum again!

We're in for the night before our actual tour starts tomorrow.

Adios!

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Peru Adventures #1!!

Here I am, in South America. Lima, Peru to be exact. I started with my walking/hiking/training at the very beginning of August and I am glad I did. We have been doing a ton of walking.

LAN Airlines was great. The flight attendants were cheerful and helpful, I LOVED the movie choices and the food was really good! Not a bumpy ride but I only slept a little bit.

My friend Kimberly and I arrived in the middle of the night. Immigration was surprisingly quick even though our plane was full. We were supposed to have our transportation awaiting us at the airport but we never found our driver so we had another driver take us to our hotel. When we were first going to our hotel I we were a tad worried as it looked like it was in not such a safe area. Turns out it was the wrong hotel and our driver got us there, no problem. When we got to our hotel we were checked in and they brought our bags to our room. Our room is a really decent room. The beds are really comfortable and the towels are very fluffy and soft. We have a flat screen tv and a mini bar fridge. We got situated, turned on the tv and crashed out for the night.

Of course, even only after a few hours sleep I still wake up at 7 am. I don't think I can ever sleep in anymore! I of course peek out the shades and it's cloudy and no one walking around. I know I can't get back to sleep so I start to get ready. The one thing I am having to remember every time is that toilet paper does not go in the toilet. It goes in the trash can. Somehow I have been able to remember that. Anyway, we get ready and head downstairs for the complimentary breakfast. I didn't know what to expect as I am not a pastry person so I brought fruit and nut bars just in case. The breakfast room was great! Nice tables to sit at. They have scrambled eggs, scrambled eggs with jamon (ham), slices of cheese, slices of jamon, papaya, yogurt, corn flakes, assorted breads and papaya or orange juice. I had some scrambled eggs, papaya, wheat toast, yogurt and cheese. I also have to say that the coffee has been really good. On the plane and here. I'm not a big coffee drinker but I could tell it was really good. I also was able to fill up my stainless steel water bottle so that was a plus.

They have a computer in the lobby so after I waited for what seemed like a half an hour I was able to get an email off to David to let him know we arrived safely. Now we have wifi in the room so I am able to do everything courtesy of Skype and wifi. Yay!

We headed out for the day and our first stop was the Museo de la Pacida. It was free entrance but pretty small. We thought that maybe not all of it was open since it was Sunday. It had a large collection of old Peruvian artifacts and paintings throughout the history of Peru. From there we walked around for a bit, not sure where we could go so and then decided on a taxi to Plaza Mayor which is in the city center. We walked around and took pictures of the buildings and beautiful architecture. We headed down one calle and ended up in a area that had a bunch of street vendors. We found one that sold green corn tamales and I ordered one that we could split. After Kimberly tried mine she ordered one and ate the majority of it except for one piece of meat that showed up towards one side but we both loved the tamale. Red onions and a spicy salsa on top. Yum! Then I was all about the food carts. I got some fried yucca chips, which we devoured, a small slice of something called king kong cake, which had sweetened leche, pineapple and fig between some crispy cake. We both didn't care for that as the cake was too dry to compliment the other fruity/creamy flavors. After that I found a smiling woman making these, what looked like fried, chile donut ring things. Of course I had to try that! She fishes out 4 of the freshly fried donut rings from the wok of oil with a wooden rod, puts it on a plate, tops with some type of syrup and asks if I want some of these black gooey things from a jar. Of course! The syrup thing was like a honey/rosewater concoction and so good! The black gooey things were figs and SO good! What a treat! We walked around looking at stalls and bought some post cards. Then we got our bearings of where we were and went to the Convento de San Francisco where my highlights were the library which contained 25 thousand books dating from the 17th century. It is one of the most historical places in Latin America. My other favorite was the San Franciscan Monastery which was founded in 1692 and is baroque in style that houses the catacombs (underground crypts). We saw so many skulls and bones. A lot of them arranged in a certain way and I should have asked why. It was a great tour and highlight of the day. We spent some time at the adjoining church. I was able to take a bunch of pictures there since I photos were not allowed at the convento.

Oh, and we saw quite a few dogs that were dressed up, in clothes. We weren't sure why but found out later as this was the day when the pets are blessed. Who knew? One dog did NOT want to be wearing his suit and hat. That wad funny.

So, after all that we head back to the hotel and then ask the front desk where to get great seafood. They send us to this amazing restaurant called Al Fresco. We are greeted with a complimentary pisco sour, which I find out I LOVE!! We split an appetizer called causa which was a mashed potato cake filled with mackerel in tempura, creole mango sauce and yellow chile pepper. It also had avocado and shrimp. Holy yum!! We devour that and Kimberly has the sea bass with a tarragon curry type sauce which was amazing and I have the mixed ceviche that had corn, octopus, shrimp, flounder, scallops, clams, squids and snails. It was spicy and good!!! She ordered a desert of cherimoya fruit and cream. Wow!

We got back to the room and immediately went to sleep. Now, after a wonderful breakfast again we are off for the day.

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